


Too Damn Short

by MrShyRockstar



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Bucky is so impatient, Bucky stole my plot, Bucky-centric, Fluff, I'm full of fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Implied Stony - Freeform, Kissing, M/M, Pining, Plot, Sexual Tension, Sgt. Stony, Teasing, There is literally no plot, halp, implied stucky - Freeform, its a ploy, should I add more?, starkbucks - Freeform, to get them on the same page, what are tags, what plot?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-08
Updated: 2017-06-08
Packaged: 2018-11-10 19:15:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11133024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrShyRockstar/pseuds/MrShyRockstar
Summary: “I’m too short for this shit.”This literally sums up this little ficlet. Tony's too short, Steve is clearly (to anyone with eyes *coughnottonycough*) pining, and Bucky is just watching everything with exasperated amusement.That is all.





	Too Damn Short

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Opaline_pixie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Opaline_pixie/gifts).



> So, this was a random little idea that came to me thanks to a meme I saw. Then I saw a meme of RDJ saying he wasn't short he's just compact and well.... this happened. I am not sorry, its cute. I think. I also totally side-railed from the 'short' aspect to something completely different that will totally make sense once you read this... 
> 
> Its a lot of not dialogue because that's how my brain works. Sorry not sorry? 
> 
> Also its Bucky-centric too, FYI :P It was suppose to be Tony, and Tony's POV and him complaining about being short and somehow this leading to Steve picking on him and Bucky was like "WAIT! WHAT IF" and this happened. *Shrug* 
> 
> Enjoy~!

It all started when Bucky noticed a very peculiar pattern that seemed to involve not only Steve, but Tony as well. 

-Three months prior-

“Hey Tony?” Steve asked, voice holding such a pure tone of curiosity that Bucky knew instinctively that whatever the man was about to say was going to be utter bullshit. In some shape or form. Tony, clearly still under some impression that Steve wasn’t a giant troll, instantly perked up from where he was sitting on a stool in the lab, swiveling so he could better see Steve who was standing in front of a shelf along one of the back walls. “What’s that?” Steve continued, pointing up at an object on the top shelf not too far above his own head.

Always excited to share all knowledge about anything he has created, Tony instantly jumped up and moved to where Steve was standing. “Which object? This one?” Tony asked stretching up as far as he could go so his fingers brushed across what he clearly thought Steve was talking about. 

“No, no, that, there.” Steve corrected pointing up towards where Tony was reaching, but not moving an inch to actively help Tony grab the object of his attention. Despite the fact that Steve could grab whatever it was with ease.

Bucky slowly raised his eyebrows, head tilting just slightly at an angle as he watched the interaction with slightly more attention than moments before.

Tony huffed and shifted his weight to the side, stretching slightly more towards the left as he glanced over his shoulder then up at the shelf trying to judge what Steve was pointing at. “This?” Tony asked curiously, fingers just barely brushing across an object a few inches over, his whole body shifting with the effort to reach the shelf and not actively move his feet. 

Steve however wasn’t even watching the shelf anymore but Tony himself. An expression of soft enchantment morphing his features. “No, right next to it. The round thing.” Steve clarified, expression shifting to a gentle but unassuming smile as Tony gave him a soft huff in response before shifting his weight completely to stretch and grab said object. Once Tony had it he spun around instantaneously launching into an explanation of the object to Steve, whom of which clearly didn’t actually care. However Steve’s soft expression never vanished and he still listened with rapt attention as Tony talked.

Bucky, of course, found this insanely curious, so he started paying attention.

-Two months prior-

Bucky watched quietly from the doorway as Tony stretched as far as his slender, yet unfortunately compact, form would go. Nimble tan fingers mere centimeters from their target and clearly Tony was not okay with this. “I’m too short for this shit.” Tony grumbled, huffing as he dropped back down so he was standing flat footed on the ground. His hands instantly coming to rest on his hips as he stared up at the object of his immediate ire. 

Bucky tilted his head and shifted silently backwards just enough that he was more in the shadows when Tony turned his head side to side to see if anyone was around. Bucky knew he should probably go help the other man, but he really wanted to see what creative way Tony would come up with this time to get the object. Bucky’s gaze left the fuming male for a moment to peer at another hidden male just in the doorway to the kitchen adjacent to himself. Bucky wondered how Steve even knew Tony was going to need that particular item, or even when he would have needed it. 

Apparently, this was a thing. A really strange thing where Steve would ask Tony for objects off the highest shelves possible at the strangest intervals. Alternatively, and probably the real reason that Tony had yet to catch on, Steve also would move Tony’s things around when Tony wasn’t there or even go so far as to trick other team members into ‘putting things away’ in the wrong places. Bucky really wasn’t sure the purpose of this, of why Steve was, well simply put, pranking Tony in such a way. Steve clearly had no problems sending Tony on all these meaningless little runs to get stuff from the highest shelves possible, and that piqued Bucky’s interest. What was the point? 

It’s not like Tony was a short guy by any means, being the healthy 5’9 that he is. However this was nothing when compared to Steve and Bucky’s heights of 6’0 respectively. One wouldn’t think a mere four inches was a lot, but in terms of height it really was. 

Bucky of course had noticed before that Tony could get impressively creative about getting things down from shelves he couldn’t quite reach -- ironic since he built this tower and probably should have thought about shelf height before doing so. Bucky had always been amused by these little displays of irritation-mixed-creativity that would happen in those moments but he never thought to exploit them, and that was clearly what Steve was doing.

So Bucky watched. 

He catalogued, made notes, waited. 

Time passed and he watched.

He watched until the moment where he decided he couldn’t take it anymore and if he had to see that sliver of skin that always peeked out from beneath Tony’s shirts as he stretched his svelte body as far as it would go to get something for Steve one more time, he might just combust himself.

Because honestly, Bucky thought Tony was a gift from God. His stature might have been smaller than average but he was definitely not lacking anywhere else. Tony was built, most likely from a life of engineering and making his own machines and doing upkeep on them. Not only was Tony’s compact and built body a delight to study--sadly clothed--it definitely didn’t help how well he wore clothes too. No matter what he wore, from his thousands-of-dollar suits to a ratty tank top with a pair of sweats, Tony always looked like he was draped in clothes made for his body.

If Bucky didn’t know better, and really who said he did, he would have thought Tony had made a deal with the devil himself to get clothes to make his body look so sinful no matter what. 

So it wasn’t like Bucky didn’t mind this strange type of teasing Steve was passive-aggressively engaging in with a very unaware Tony. It’s just that every man had his limits and Bucky was fast approaching his. If Steve wasn’t going to act on whatever little mischievous ploy he was hatching then Bucky sure as hell was going to.

He just needed the perfect moment.

-Present Day-

Bucky had just entered the lab not having announced his presence yet. He had planned to except Steve was clearly up to his shenanigans again and Bucky always enjoyed watching these events as an unknown audience than active participant. 

“Hey Tony? Where did you put my charcoals?” Steve was asking, and the glint in those beautiful blue eyes was the only hint Bucky got that Steve knew exactly where the damn things were and they were probably on a high shelf. Bucky narrowed his eyes on Steve -- who of course didn’t even notice -- before turning his head to watch Tony. 

Tony who had turned to the shelf right behind him and was currently stretching to his limit to try and get purchase on the small box literally on top of the cabinet. Bucky’s eyebrows raised at that, Steve usually was nice and put things on the top shelf but clearly he wanted to see what Tony would do because Tony was missing the box by a few inches at least and wouldn’t be able to reach it without some form of assistance. That or he’d have to climb the shelf.

Buckys eyes tracked the path of Tony’s hands as he stretched for the box, wiggling his nimble fingers in the air as if that would gain him distance closer to his target. Bucky trailed his gaze down the muscular arm that seamlessly ran into the thick corded muscles of Tony’s strong shoulders. He almost hummed in appreciation just at the man’s shoulder-line. 

Bucky’s gaze ticked down the curve of Tony’s solid back almost involuntarily. An inaudible groan caught in his throat as he watched Tony wiggle slightly, leaning the bulk of his weight into the shelves before him as he gave a small hop in hopes of grabbing the charcoals. Bucky caught his bottom lip between his teeth as a spike of heat shot through him when the action caused Tony’s shirt to ride up the male's back exposing a good couple inches of smooth tan skin. 

A small wiggle of Tony’s hips as the man shifted again, clearly not giving up, and Bucky could feel his restraint snap as if it was a physical thing.

Bucky stalked across the lab in a few quick strides, his movements silent and smooth as he pressed himself just behind Tony with barely centimeters of space between them. Buckys flesh hand instantly sought out the smooth expanse of visible skin on Tony’s waist. His fingers dipping beneath the shirt for a second before smoothing down to settle on the top of a sharp pelvis. A spark of pleasure shot up Bucky’s arm and down his spine in a pleasant tingle upon contact with that smooth warm skin. 

In the same movement Bucky’s metal hand trailed up Tony’s outstretched arm, fingers brushing across the exposed skin in the ghost of a caress. Bucky gently nudged Tony’s fingers out of his way as he reached up those extra couple inches to grab the damned box. 

As Bucky pulled it down, having barely needing to stretch for the box at all, he lowered the item into Tony’s stunned outstretched hand then slowly added pressure until Tony himself started lowering his hand. A thrill shot through Bucky’s chest at the small shiver he could feel run through Tony at the suddenness of his presence.

Bucky hummed in amusement at the sudden startled quiet in the lab. He leaned his weight forward pressing his chest more fully along Tony’s back while he ducked his head to look over Tony’s shoulder at the man’s face, chuckling softly at the startled expression adorning the man’s usually controlled face. 

“Y’ look’d like y’ needed some help there, Doll” Bucky drawled, keeping his expression into one of innocent charm. Tony’s dazed eyes snapped to meet his own smoldering ones, and the second their gazes met it was as if the last few seconds finally computed for the stunned male. With a full body tremble Tony exhaled sharply, mouthing “Fuck me” on expelled air. 

Bucky let his soft smile morph into a wicked grin as he released the small box into Tony’s hand, barely holding in a snort at the slight fumble of Tony’s hand as he scrambled to hold onto the box he clearly was barely paying attention to until that moment. Bucky’s metal hand then trailed across the man’s shoulder absently before sliding down till it was resting on the man’s hip. 

“Would be my absolute pleasure, doll” Bucky declared in a soft hum causing the words to come out in a low rumble. Bucky shifted his weight into his heels, taking a moderately sized step back without releasing his hold on Tony. Doing so caused Tony to stumble backwards slightly against Bucky but turned the man in the direction Bucky intended for him to turn, and if Tony ended pressed back up against Bucky because of his stumble, well Bucky wasn’t one to complain. 

Bucky’s gaze finally left the side of Tony’s face to snap across the room, easily finding and landing on a very startled appearing Steve. Upon making eye contact Steve’s expression flitted through a few emotions almost too quick for Bucky to catch before shuttering into a blank slate. Bucky’s grin became even more impish. 

Bucky leaned forward the few inches it took to put his mouth right next to Tony’s ear, his next sentence coming out in a soft purr “I’ll gladly do that for you Tony, but first, I think you should ask that idiot if he’d care to join us.” Bucky tilted his head, eyes shuttering so they were half closed as he kept his eyes locked on Steve’s slightly widening one. “Or, maybe he plans to just torture himself watching you, making you reach for things at impossible heights for the rest of his life.” Bucky deadpanned, inwardly cackling at the instant expression of discomfort that crossed Steve’s face. A blush was rising across those pale cheeks and it was absolutely divine to look at.

Tony just stared at Steve with an expression of incomprehension, eyes blank as his brain clearly tried to catch up with the words Bucky spoke. It was clear the second everything clicked for Tony, due to the instant burning of heat that lit up those expressive brown eyes. 

Tony instantly bristled, lifting the hand holding the box of charcoals to brandish them in Steve’s direction as if to emphasize his point, “You were doing it on purpose!?” 

Then ostensibly the rest of what Bucky had been saying finally settled in Tony’s brain because the man in question spun as much as Bucky’s grip would allow to gape up at Bucky. Tony’s expression incredulous. Not allowing Steve to even respond to his question, Tony shot his own question to Bucky, “Did you really just say you’d fuck me, while simultaneously specifying that it could be a threesome if Steve is actually messing with me?” 

Bucky couldn’t help it, he laughed. He tossed his head back, eyes sliding shut as he convulsed with barely contained laughter. He squeezed his fingers into Tony’s hips drawing the man closer to him as he leaned forward again, eyes sliding open to mischevious slivers as he made eye contact with Tony. Bucky’s face was a mere inch or two away as he grinned sinfully, “I didn’t just say it, think of it more as a declaration of intent. Where Steve may be perfectly happy being passive aggressive about his intentions I’m more straightforward. You asked me, I’m just asking when and where.” Bucky declared smoothly. 

Tony’s eyes widened astronomically as Bucky spoke, lips parting to further express the amount of shock the man was feeling at that statement. Gathering himself quickly though Tony closed his mouth before inhaling sharply to reply only to stop when a large pale hand suddenly slid to cup his cheek, causing the shorter man to jump even as that hand turned his head. Bucky startled too, although he didn’t show so outwardly. He had been so intent on Tony that he hadn’t even been aware Steve had moved. Not that this was surprising, the only person Bucky knew that could move as quietly as him was Steve. 

“Tony” Steve murmured softly, eyes lidded as he finished turning Tony’s head so the male was not only facing him but his head was tilted back to look up at the much taller blonde. Bucky’s bottom lip caught between his teeth again as he became aware of just how close Steve was slotting himself into Tony’s space from the front. The two were practically pressed almost as closely as Bucky was to Tony. It was like a small Tony sandwich, and wasn’t that just a delightfully sinful thought? 

“Steve?” Tony exhaled softly, tone questioning. 

“Tell me to back off, tell me no, tell us to stop. Say you don’t want this...” Steve murmured, voice so low in its desperation it was barely a whisper. Bucky tensed at Steve’s words, lips parting on a protest that went unspoken as Tony responded almost instantly.

“And if I say yes?” 

Steve’s head jerked back just the slightest, clearly having not expected this response. Although Bucky wasn’t sure how Steve could have expected anything else, it was so obvious that Tony wanted Steve too. Bucky probably only recognized this due to how much time he spent watching the two though.

“Fuck, Tony.” Steve hissed, fingers tightening their grip on Tony’s jaw, fingers digging slightly into the man’s cheek. Without hesitation, clearly back on his game, Tony retorted with his usual amount of snark “I do believe that is the intention?”

A helpless sound of disbelief forced its way out of Steve’s mouth as his other hand shot out to slide into Tony’s hair, cupping the back of the man’s head as Steve dragged the man closer into a heated kiss. Bucky let out a startled yet soft noise, his eyes drinking in the sight before him as he watched Steve devour Tony the way a starving man might demolish their first real meal. Tony floundered between them for a moment, one hand clenched into the middle of Steve’s shirt while the other reached back for Bucky grasping at air until Bucky shifted closer to allow the man to grab at him. 

Bucky dipped his head to nibble down Tony’s stretched neck, pressing his nose beneath the sharp bone of the man’s jaw. Steve broke the heated kiss with a gasp, grinning widely at Tony’s mewl of protest although between the two men holding him in place he had no hope of doing anything about the blonde retreating. 

“Oh holy shit, this is, wow, why is this just now happening? What is even…” Tony started to babble, clearly reeling from the kiss. Steve, the absolute troll that he is, just shrugged his shoulders as if he had no idea why. Clearly hoping Tony wouldn’t jump back onto the train of questioning Bucky led him onto earlier. 

Bucky, however, could be just as much a troll as Steve if only at Steve’s expense. He slowly rubbed the fingers of his flesh hand into Tony’s hip, shifting his hand until it was completely underneath the man’s shirt. He trailed his hand around to the man's stomach then slowly up the hard planes of muscle along his abs to his chest, stopping short of the arc reactor. “Well,” Bucky murmured, still nosing along Tony’s jaw till his nose was pressed just behind the man’s ear. “I couldn’t handle watching you stretch yourself across things anymore. If I had to watch you reach for something one more time and wonder what you’d look like stretched across me instead….well I’m pretty sure I couldn’t be held accountable for what I would have done.” At some point during his explanation his voice became more rugged and low, almost a rumble. 

Bucky opened his eyes just a sliver, not sure when he had even closed them, to cast a glance up at Steve. Steve whose heated gaze was watching him just as intently. “I know for a fact Steve wasn’t doing that shit to torture me, but alas it was definitely a side affect of all his trolling.” Bucky finished, pulling away until his hands were once again resting lightly along Tony’s hips, the man’s body no longer pressed against his own. Bucky raised an eyebrow as Steve instantly started sputtering.

“Hey! I wasn’t trolling, I was appreciating some fine art y’know. Also I was always asking for actual things I needed--!” Steve started, clearly trying to defend himself.

Bucky didn’t feel like letting him off the hook though, “Oh yeah? Like that round thing on the back shelf?” 

“Why yes, of course I--” Steve started.

“Or the snacks from the common area you never even eat unless Tony’s around to get them for you?” 

“Well, see…”

“Of course ignoring all the times you clearly set things on higher shelves than you’d normally set them just to watch Tony go looking for them later.”

“Now wait I didn’t--”

“I think my all time favorite has to be when you convinced Thor to clean the communal area knowing he’d most likely put things in not only the wrong spots but on the higher shelves because Thor has no spatial awareness that he’s a lot taller than most of us.” 

“Wait, that wasn’t--”

“Exactly how long has this been going on?” Tony piped up from between them, clearly annoyed that they were, literally, snipping at each other over his head at this point.  
“Not long at--” Steve started to say when Bucky spoke, clearly, over him “Since I first noticed? Three months ago, but who knows how long before that.” 

Tony grunted, leaning back into Bucky’s chest absently as he tilted his head back to look up at Steve. Steve, who had quite the impressive blush spreading across his pale cheeks and was looking absolutely anywhere but at the two of them. 

“I want to care, I know somewhere rationally I should totally care about this. And I totally will care about this, later, but I’d really prefer we rewind back to the moment where Bucky, apparently, declared specific order of events that I’d like to go explore now.” Tony bluntly stated, voice droll as he spoke. 

This startled an abrupt laugh from Steve who looked at Bucky for a moment. Bucky shrugged minutely, expression one of soft amusement. After a moment of silent communication between the two, Tony made a disgruntled sound of annoyance and was clearly about to say something more when they’d reached a decision. Steve suddenly dipped down till he could easily lift Tony over his shoulder at the waist. Steve picked Tony up with ease then turned away and stalked off, knowing Bucky would follow.

And follow Bucky did, with a look of deep satisfaction and anticipation spreading across his features.

**Author's Note:**

> Well, if you're reading this then you have made it to the end. I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave me reviews, I absolutely love those! :D And Kudos! And I hope you thought this was bookmark worthy!


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